Green Fleet

Lightning Systems Electric Ford Transit: 61 MPGe in the City

April 4, 2018
• by Staff

Photo of the Ford Transit LightningElectric courtesy of Lightning Systems.

Lightning Systems’ battery-electric Ford Transit LightningElectric will provide a fuel economy rating of 61 MPGe in the city and 66 MPGe on the highway, according to the vehicle modifier, which will display it for fleets around the U.S. in April and May.

Two Ford Transit LightningElectric vehicles with battery-electric drivetrain packages will begin the showcase tour at Lightning Systems’ headquarters in Loveland, Colorado. Then, one will go westbound to California and throughout that state, while the other will travel eastbound through Detroit to New York, according to Lightning Systems.

The westbound tour will end at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in Long Beach, California, while the eastbound tour culminates at the 30th Annual Equipment & Vehicle Show in Queens, New York. Following the tour, Lightning Systems will make deliveries of the LightningElectric to Halo Event Group, a FedEx Ground contractor in New York City, and to XPO Bus Sales in Los Angeles.

Results from Lightning Systems demonstrated that a Ford Transit 350HD equipped with the zero-emissions LightningElectric drivetrain achieved 61 MPGe on EPA City routes and 66 MPGe on EPA Highway routes, compared to 13 and 15 MPG respectively for the identically configured gasoline Ford Transit 350HD, said the company.

The LightningElectric battery conversion package is available for Ford Transit as part of Ford Motor Company's eQVM program. The product will be available first on heavy-duty Transits with a 10,360-pound gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR). Conversions and service are performed by Ford QVM-certified upfitters and dealers around the world.

The all-electric Lightning product features a liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery from a volume-ready battery supplier that can be fast-charged in 30 minutes on DC fast charging and in six hours with Level 2 charging, said Lightning Systems. Depending on battery option and drive cycle, LightningElectric has a payload capacity of up to 4,000 pounds.

Lightning Systems also recently announced that it has developed a hydrogen fuel cell version of the LightningElectric developed in partnership with several industry partners that will extend the range of the vehicle to over 200 miles, the company said. This product will be available in summer 2018 with a focus on the California market where significant vouchers for fuel cell vehicles and infrastructure are available.

Fisker Inc. has unveiled the Fisker EMotion luxury sedan prototype that looks to rival the Tesla Model S, and also revealed a solid-sate battery for electric vehicles that will look to provide more power and range than lithium-ion batteries.

A $7,500 federal tax credit that has fueled sales of plug-in electric vehicles in recent years could be eliminated if House Republicans can include the proposal in the tax cut bill now under discussion, reports Reuters.